Mary+Keegan

On February 16, 1890, Mrs. Mary Keegan died in Chicago from complications of an illegal abortion performed that day.

Mary died at the location where the abortion was performed.

Mrs. Annie Schneider was arrested and held by the Coroner's Jury. She is described as employed in an unidentified profession.

The Homicide in Chicago Interactive Database shows no other illegal abortion deaths associated with Mrs. Schneider.

I have no information on overall maternal mortality, or abortion mortality, in the 19th century. I imagine it can't be too much different from maternal and abortion mortality at the very beginning of the 20th Century. Note, please, that with issues such as doctors not using proper aseptic techniques, lack of access to blood transfusions and antibiotics, and overall poor health to begin with, there was likely little difference between the performance of a legal abortion and illegal practice, and the aftercare for either type of abortion was probably equally unlikely to do the woman much, if any, good. For more on this era, see [|Abortion Deaths in the 19th Century]. For more on pre-legalization abortion, see [|The Bad Old Days of Abortion] Sources:


 * [|Homicide in Chicago Interactive]

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